Low profile accessible sills are used to provide easier access to buildings by handicapped individuals in wheelchairs. However, controlling leakage where the door meets an accessible sill has been a problem at least in part because of the one-half inch maximum height limitation for handicap accessible sills. Thus, accessible sills generally have not performed well in blowing rainstorms and typically are assigned a “limited water” (LW) rating for product performance. Previous efforts at water management for low profile sill designs have attempted to create a perfect seal between a frame, sill, and a closed door panel. This is known as “barrier” design and, in theory at least, is sound. However, barrier design often fails to result in a perfect seal when subjected to variations in piece part manufacturing, door assembly at the manufacturing facility, door installation at a building site, and forces of weathering and normal use. As a result, leakage, particularly in blowing rainstorms, is generally inevitable.
Thus, there is a need for a low profile handicap accessible door sill that addresses water leakage problems with prior art accessible sills without relying on a barrier design that rarely meets the design target of a perfect seal and does not form a reliable seal. It is to the provision of such an accessible sill and an accessible doorway incorporating the sill that the present invention is primarily directed.